What does Ellie love? Glue, paper & tape.
When she runs out to the kitchen island and plops her box of stuff down, I know we're in for a good hour or two of fun. She usually has to make a few trips back and forth to her room, only because she can't decide on exactly what crafts/activities she's most interested in, but eventually she gets it.
I can honestly tell you that we have been through enough paper to cover an acre of land.
Not only does she like to make 'pictures', she loves to make mail. Yes, I've had to sacrifice my envelopes. However, when I look at the trade off - envelopes for 10 minutes of quiet time while I clean up -- she can have the whole box. She's sent enough 'mail' to her Daddy and I that IF I were to actually mail them, this family could save the United States Postal Service.
It's not enough for her to just put a single piece of tape on to secure the envelope, oh no, we're talking 10 pieces on each piece of mail. She secures the drawing closed (about 6 pieces there), then she puts three or four on the envelope so it doesn't open when the 'mail guy' takes it. I could probably wrap a whole family of mummies with what she's used.
Now, about the glue. It's not enough to just put a dot of glue on the paper, no no - we have a pool. A small pool for every piece, no matter what size the paper is. A little excess is fine, she's 4 - but we're getting a little extreme here. When she moves the piece to let it dry, the glue soaks through the paper and it ends up securing itself to the island.
We've used the bottles and sticks - both equally bad. With the bottle, it's a pool and with the stick, it's a mountain because she can't really see it, so she just keeps layering it on there.
Lately I've been finding myself in the kitchen at 10:30pm, after she falls asleep, trying to scrub the glue, paper, food and some foreign (sometimes questionable) stuff off the island.
I try to keep a fair share of what she makes, it will be fun to show her the stuff in the future. However, I have a feeling that I'll be buying glue and tape by the case when she starts kindergarten. I'm going to have to help the teacher out, my kid alone is going to put a huge dent in their budget.
I must say though, I'm having a hard time deciding which is worse - the glue/paper/tape issue or Play-Doh?! I love doing Play-Doh with her, we can sit for hours using all the neat little tools - but it always turns into a mess... and I end up finding that 'missing piece' with my sock. I can't believe how many pairs of socks I've had to throw away because this stuff doesn't wash out. It's always there. It's like colored, fun glue.
It does seem like no matter what activity we choose, we end up wearing it. Glue, paper, tape, Play-Doh, chalk, macaroni art or food - it's everywhere. I've been that Mom at the grocery store with chalk on my clothes and Cheerios in my purse.
No matter how much stuff I pull out of my hair, socks that get thrown away or long nights cleaning up the mess - I love being Ellie's Mom!
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